Posts

• November 8, 1994

  The demand for currency and the underground economy

  Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 1994 Thérèse Laflèche

  The underground economy in Canada has attracted increased attention over the past few years, yet there is no precise way to measure its size. Recent estimates vary between 4 per cent and 15 per cent of gross domestic product. This article provides an overview of measurement issues and recent estimates. It then focusses on the "monetary" approach to estimating the size of the underground economy. This approach is based on the assumption that the demand for bank notes provides a clue as to the size of the underground economy. The article concludes that estimates that use this approach must be viewed with considerable caution. They are based on a number of assumptions that are difficult to verify and that significantly affect the results.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Monetary aggregates
• November 7, 1994

  The use of Canadian bank notes

  Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 1994 Louise Hyland

  This article delves into the microeconomics of note circulation, reviewing main factors affecting the demand for bank notes over the last 50 years, including new technology such as automated banking machines. It also discusses trends in the average value of notes in circulation and in the demand for notes of different denominations.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Bank notes

• The Causes of Unemployment in Canada: A Review of the Evidence

  Staff Working Paper 1994-11 Stephen S. Poloz

  This paper reviews various competing theories of structural unemployment and considers whether they may be used to explain any of the rise in unemployment experienced by Canada during the most recent economic cycle.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Labour markets

• Les provinces canadiennes et la convergence : une évaluation empirique

  Staff Working Paper 1994-10 Mario Lefebvre

  This paper examines whether the hypothesis of economic convergence holds for the Canadian provinces. Using data on real gross domestic product per capita and on factor productivity from 1966 to 1992, the paper shows, using two different methods, that the convergence hypothesis cannot be rejected. This evidence supports the findings of other authors who have studied convergence among Canadian provinces.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Recent economic and financial developments

• Symétrie des chocs touchant les régions canadiennes et choix d'un régime de change

  Staff Working Paper 1994-9 Alain DeSerres, René Lalonde

  The authors attempt to determine whether the primary advantage of the flexible exchange rate between Canada and the United States—the rapid adjustment of the real exchange rate following an asymmetrical shock—is as evident at the regional as at the national level.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates

• The Bank of Canada's New Quarterly Projection Model, Part 1. The Steady-State Model: SSQPM

  Technical Report No. 72 Richard Black, Douglas Laxton, David Rose, Robert Tetlow

  This report is the first documenting the Bank of Canada's new model of the Canadian economy, the Quarterly Projection Model (QPM). QPM is used at the Bank of Canada for both economic projections and policy analysis. Here the authors focus on the model's long-run properties, describing SSQPM, a model of the steady state of QPM […]

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Topic(s): Economic models JEL Code(s): C, C5, C51, E, E1, E13

• Wealth, Disposable Income and Consumption: Some Evidence for Canada

  Technical Report No. 71 Tiff Macklem

  The author develops a measure of aggregate private sector wealth in Canada and examines its ability to explain aggregate consumption of non-durables and services. This wealth measure includes financial, physical and human wealth. The author measures human wealth as the expected present value of aggregate labour income, net of government expenditures, based on a discrete […]

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Topic(s): Domestic demand and components JEL Code(s): D, D9, D91, E, E2, E21

• An Empirical Investigation into Government Spending and Private Sector Behaviour

  Staff Working Paper 1994-8 Robert Amano, Tony S. Wirjanto

  We examine whether there is a significant relationship between government and private consumption for Canada. We derive estimating equations between the two types of consumption under both cointegration and no-cointegration assumptions.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Recent economic and financial developments

• L'endettement du secteur privé au Canada: un examen macroéconomique

  Staff Working Paper 1994-7 Jean-François Fillion

  In this study, the author examines the hypothesis of private-sector debt overhang, which suggests that households and businesses may on occasion find themselves holding too much debt and so decide to reduce it by cutting back expenditures. His aim is to determine whether this hypothesis can help explain the weakness of credit growth and the sluggishness of the recent economic recovery in Canada.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Sectoral balance sheet

• The Implications of the FTA and NAFTA for Canada and Mexico

  Technical Report No. 70 William White

  This report highlights the possible implications of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for Canada and Mexico. While it is still early, the initial evidence indicates that these treaties are contributing to a continental process of industrial restructuring that will contribute to higher living standards over time. The […]

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Topic(s): International topics JEL Code(s): F, F1, F13